‘I think I already have my prize.’ Then he was reaching for her hand. Dragging her into the seclusion of one of the larger caves. It was cool and dark and smelt elemental—earthy and sensual. He pulled her in further, his hands circling her waist. Those all-blue Maitland eyes gazed down at her. God, he was divine. And hers for the taking if she wanted. All she had to do was breach that two-inch gap between them.
She struggled to get away. At least her head did. Her body glued itself to him.
He ran his tongue over her top lip, slowly. Achingly slowly. ‘Kiss me.’
‘What?’ She pressed her hands against his chest, ready to push away. But her fingers curled into the fabric of his T-shirt as if making a stand. We shall not be removed. Excellent, just what she needed—renegade hands. ‘Kiss you, here? You think that’s wise?’
‘It’s the wisest thing I’ve ever done. Look...’ He pointed to the thick shrubbery covering the view of the inside of the cave from outside. ‘No one knows, no one cares. Hell, I’m sick of hiding out. I don’t care who knows. And I’m going mad looking at the sway of your backside as you walk up that hill. I’ve got to kiss you. Now.’
‘One kiss?’ She could do that. One kiss. One final kiss. What harm would it do? ‘Just one.’
‘Or two, if you insist.’
‘One is fine.’
‘Yes, Charge Nurse Radley. And then I’ll claim another later. And another. And another. When we’re on our own. In bed.’
A tight fist clenched in the pit of her stomach. She wasn’t being honest with him. She shouldn’t be here doing this. But, God, she wanted to. Too much.
‘No...listen, Max. We need to talk. We can’t—’
Before she could find the right words his mouth lowered onto hers. Such a gentle pressure, sweet and soft, suckling her lip. The simple, perfect pleasure of tasting him. He could be so tender yet so strong. So brilliant and yet so endearingly silly, it made her heart ache.
His tongue danced a slow dance against hers, teasing, enticing. Making her yearn for more. His body told her how much he wanted her. His mouth told her how much he cared. And she hoped she answered him with her response—at least her body was honest.
She clung to him in the damp darkness, not wanting to let go. He was so powerfully addictive, took her to places that she’d never been to before. Made her heart sing a soft and hopeful song where before it had played a fractured lament.
For a few beautiful seconds she allowed herself to take what she craved. Before the dumb bass notes in her head told her this was all kinds of foolish.
Then she managed to find the strength she needed to take a step back, even though the space between them filled with a rush of air that made her feel cold and she wanted to nuzzle back into his heat.
This had to stop. Insane. Senseless.
She turned her back, ignoring his hurt and confused look. And shouted back to him in the lightest voice possible, ‘Race you to the top!’
The roughly hewn path gave way to countless wooden steps, getting steeper and steeper. She began to think it’d never end, and he’d catch her up and ask her a zillion difficult questions. But suddenly a bright blue gap in the bushline announced her arrival at the summit.
‘Wow. That was worth the effort,’ she spluttered to one of the guides as she managed the final few metres. Her heart hammered hard in her chest and sweat ran in rivulets down her back.
There were three-sixty-degree views—across the ocean to the east, and to the west where the melting sun cast a warm orange glow over the city and harbour. And right in the middle the Sky Tower rose magnificently, dwarfing the other buildings, like a needle jabbing the darkening sky.
She thought back to that day where she’d taken her leap of faith and started to try to trust again. To trust Max—the funniest, sexiest man she’d ever known. And it plain broke her heart that she would have to let him go.
‘Here, eat something, keep that energy up. You’re going to need it later.’ Winking at her, he handed her a paper plate of cheese and crackers from the backpack he’d lugged up the hill. ‘For the kayak home, obviously.’
He seemed a little frayed perhaps but kept up the smile as he set out the rest of the picnic